The Retrieval
by Alicorna
Summary: or “Retrievers, Transporters and Ducks! Oh My!” Ban and Ginji are on assigmnent against the Transporters, but who are they fighting and what do ducks have to do with it? Betas: Riyuji and Rabid Lola HIATUS SEE CH1 AUTHOR'S NOTE FOR IMPORTANT NOTICE
1. 1: The Assignment

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This fic is discontinued. It will eventually be refurbished and posted by dytabytes on Thank you for reading my fic and supporting me!

* * *

Retrievers, Transporters, and Ducks, Oh My! (Edit #1)

By: Alicorna

Rating: G for now, but PG for violence in later chapters.

Betas: Riyuji and Rabid Lola

Summary: Ban and Ginji are out on a lucrative retrieval against the Transporters, but what are the yazuka really trying to do, who are they really up against, what do ducks have to do with it? Anything's possible so far.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the GetBackers characters , although I dearly wish that I did. Simply put, what's mine is mine, and what's not is not. Let's not confuse the issue with lawsuits.

* * *

It was the kind of day that most people hate. Cold and clear, there was no snow on the ground, only ice and slush, and the sky was overshadowed in the kind of false dawn that is foreboding and grey. 

"Ban-chan I'm cold" wibbled Amano Ginji. The one-time emperor of Mujenjyou, was now reduced to a shivering lump of tare mush.

"Shut up baka."

Ginji sniffled, and, if possible, shrunk even smaller.

Midou Ban, heir to the jyagan and the serpent-spirit Aesclepius, grumbled, and focussed on driving his car on the slippery roads of Shinjuku.

"Why the hell would Hevn call us at THIS ungodly hour?"

Truthfully, it was 5 o'clock on that February morning, and Ban's dislike of the cold had been magnified to absolute hatred over the years with the presence of Aesclepius.

"She'd better have a fantastic job for us, otherwise I'm gonna scream."

The car pulled up on the curb, and Ginji popped back into human form and dashed for the warm, safe haven of the Honky Tonk, while Ban muttered and deftly parked the 360, his 'baby', making sure to pay the parking fare.

_I'm NOT going to walk all the way to the police station in THIS weather._

Ban trudged into the cafe, and was greeted by Paul with a sleepy "'Morning" and a yawn.

"Ah there you are Ban!" chirped Hevn. Totally oblivious to the time or the weather, she was disgustingly perky, and wore a pleated miniskirt and a shirt that was holding together by a single button that threatened to give out at any moment.

"Yeah yeah, just tell us what the job is already Hevn." Ban sighed, as he heaved himself up onto a bar stool.

_Damnit, I'm to sluggish to even consider groping Hevn! I HATE the cold._

Shivering, he hunkered down, even as Ginji dashed in from the kitchen with two steaming mugs.

"Ban-chan! Master let us have some coffee!"

"Gimmee!"

Ban jumped for the coffee, almost spilling it with his eagerness.

Neither Ginji or Hevn could tell if he was enjoying the heat or the caffeine-fix more, but it was obvious that the man was enjoying himself immensely.

"If you're ready now, I'll tell you about the job." Clearing her throat, with much wobbling of cleavage, Hevn went into mediator-mode. Absently, Ginji thought to himself that watching the movement beneath the mediator's shirt was almost as interesting as poking a bowl of jello and watching it move. (1)

As Hevn breathed in to start talking, he amended that thought. _Definitely more interesting..._

"The client is Otsubo Kureshi, a university professor at Tokyo U. He's found a chemical formula that he thought could eventually be used to refine gold at an even higher purity than conventional methods. The problem is that the yazuka found out about his studies just as he finished testing, and stole all of his information and his backups. Your mission is to retrieve the disks with his notes without causing them harm, and return them within a week."

Hevn tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, while checking that the two retrievrs were still listening.

"Presumably, these notes are being transported from the vicinity of Tokyo to a yazuka laboratory. These are the routes that the notes are probably going to take. The only place that the transporters are guaranteed to cross at is here between 8 and 11 this morning, which is why I called you here so early."

Pulling out a map, Hevn gestured to several red lines, all leading from a red dot marked "Tokyo", to another marked "Yazuka", then gestured to a section of map highlighted in blue ink.

"Any questions? Oh, and before you ask, payment's 4 million yen. This refinement process will be extremely lucrative once it's perfected."

Glowering at the busty blonde, Ban growled "You mentioned transporters, who are they?"

Sighing, Hevn pulled a photograph from her cleavage.

"All I've been able to find out is that key members of the yazuka were seen negotiating with someone here."

The photo depicted two shady-looking men facing a figure who was cloaked in shadow. Still,the hourglass figure with a wide-brimmed hat and flowing black robes, wasn't hard to recognise.

Stammering, Ginji gasped and popped into tare-form, hiding behind Ban."A-Akabane-san!"

"Aa, it appears that Dr. Jackal and two other companions have been hired as transporters, although I haven't been able to find their identities."

Shrugging, Ban cracked his neck, and stood up. "Prob'ly Mr. No-Brake and Himiko again. We, the GetBackers accept this job."

Smirking , Hevn thought to herself, _As if there was ever a chance they wouldn't when Ban has a pretty sure chance of making money and meeting Himiko-san._

Clearing her throat, Hevn stood as well.

"I'll leave it to you then. Arigato."

Then, with a shake of her hair (and her boobs) the spunky mediator left the Honky Tonk, leaving behind a dazed-looking Ban, who had glazed eyes, and drool dripping down his chin, and a quivering Ginji-chan, who could be heard to chanting a litany of "Akabane... scalpels... EEEEEE!" softly to himself.

Chuckling, she thought, _Yup, I've still got it alright._

* * *

At 7 o'clock, Paul lifted his drooping head once again, to see the figure of Kudou Himiko entering his shop. 

"Hmm, Himiko, why are you here?"

"Have you seen Ginji and Ban anywhere?"

"Well, they came in this morning to accept a job, but I don't think that they'll be back for another few hours... Aren't you supposed to be working with Mr. No-Brake, and Dr. Jackal right now, Lady Poison?"

Shaking her head, Himiko frowned, and hefted her foot up onto a chair.

Pulling down her boot, it was obvious that her ankle was wrapped in several thicknesses of bandage.

"I stupidly injured myself when I was carrying groceries up the stairs of my apartment, so working is out of the question."

Natsumi, who had come in to help Paul set up, gasped, her eyes widening. "Poor Himiko-san! I'll get you something to drink! Sit down, and don't move!"

With that, the little mother-hen ran to the kitchen to get some warm milk and cookies. (2)

"Thanks, Natsumi."

As Natsumi went to get the promised food, Himiko shivered, recalling her conversation with Dr. Jackal.

_All he told me was that I shouldn't worry, that he had found a suitable replacement. Geez, he almost seemed PLEASED that I couldn't make it... I wonder why? ..._

"Himiko-san?"

Shaking her head briskly, Lady Poison accepted a softly steaming mug and a plate of chocolate chip cookies from Natsumi with a smile.

_Jackal's probably just looking forward to working solo for a bit. And anyway, Ginji and Ban are grown-ups now, even though they don't act like it. I'm sure that they won't get into too much trouble ... or at least, if they break anything, they'll put it back together ... pretty much_.

Chuckling to herself, Himiko let her worries slip away, as she enjoyed Natsumi's cooking.

* * *

(1) Remember when Hevn pulled out her cellphone during the anime? Didn't her chest gloop like jello? X3 

(2) Milk and cookies solve every problem, don't they?

EDIT: Yes I changed it, but not noticeably... just enought to make it better

AN: I have absolutely no idea where this is going to go... I just thought that it would be cool to play around with the GetBackers characters... and invent some of my own?  
Don't worry, I guarantee that the new ones won't be Mary-Sues.

Yes, I lean towards Ban/Himiko... blame Rabid Lola and Riyuji.Raicho (who, by the way, are my most wonderful betas ) I'm hoping to add some more of that in, but who knows? I certainly don't.

Hope you enjoyed, and please review if you have the time X3

Alicorn


	2. 2: The Combatants

Retrievers, Transporters and Ducks! Oh My! (Edit #1)

By: Alicorna

Chapter Rating: **G**

Betas: Riyuji and Rabid Lola

* * *

"Ban-chan, what are we going to do this time?" asked Ginji tentatively. He was not looking forward to seeing Akabane again. The thought was sending shivers down his spine... or maybe it was just the fact that Ban had the windows of the 360 open to the frigid weather so that he could smoke. 

Grunting, Ban replied noncommittally. "Every time that we've planned to stop Mr. No-Brake, he's just driven right through... so I guess we'll just wait for the truck to pass by and wing it."

Ginji sweat-dropped. "Are you sure we shouldn't get anything ready Ban-chan? I mean, we are dealing with Himiko-chan, right?"

"And?"

"Well... we don't want to hurt her, do we?"

"Ginji, if we aren't gonna be serious about the job because we're afraid that Himiko can't take care of herself, it's pretty disrespectful to her."

"True..."

Pondering that thought, Ginji sank down into his seat, and the duo drove on in silence.

* * *

"Are you sure that you wanna be driving this fast onii-chan?" 

"Why not?"

"Well, won't the other people be mad at us?"

"I assure you, the authorities don't use this road."

"You're absolutely, positively sure onii-chan?"

"If I weren't sure, mydear little sister, why would I say it?"

"Alright onii-chan!... But-"

"Yes?"

"Won't it be hard to stop if we're going so fast?"

"The whole point is that we're not going to stop until we reach our destination."

"But..."

"What do you have to say?"

"What if we see a bunch of duckies crossing the road?"

* * *

Kagami Kyoji rarely left the area around Mugenjyou, but today was a special case. After all, it was not often that he was able to watch Raitei fight. No, it was not often indeed. 

Chuckling, he leapt with superhuman speed and precision towards the place where Mugenjyou's Thunder Emperor was practically destined to emerge.

* * *

"Onii-chan..." 

"Why do you call me onii-chan anyway? We aren't blood related in any way."

"But onii-chan rescued me from the streets, and onii-chan fed me and clothed me, and onii-chan kept me safe and warm and onii-chan hugged me when I was scared. That's what an onii-chan does, so you're my onii-chan!"

"... but I lost you."

"It wasn't onii-chan's fault that the other people took me awa-"

"I highly doubt that."

"I wasn't finished onii-chan! Anyway, you found me again, so what does it matter?"

"It matters to me very much whether you are happy or not."

"See? Only an onii-chan would worry for his little sister like that!"

"You're not going to give up are you?"

"Why would I do that?"

"..."

* * *

Ginji was apprehensive, to say the least, about meeting Akabane Kuroudo again. It wasn't really the fact that the man pulled his weapons out from his body, or that he killed so many people, or that he enjoyed fighting so much, or even that the man took such perverse pleasure in killing things. 

Ginji could accept those things, or at least, if he couldn't, he could understand them.

The plain truth of it was that Akabane Kuroudo's complete and total lack of a survival instinct was really creepy.

In Mugenjyou, the Infinite Fortress, there had been fighters with odd weapon styles, murderers who enjoyed killing, and those with even stranger quirks.

But never, NEVER had there been such a one as Akabane-san, with his casual acceptance, his every movement and attack a plea for death, and a call for it.

In a way, it was as if the man celebrated death. He wore an air of generosity when he inscribed his bloody 'J' onto those he killed.

Sometimes, it made him wonder…

"Ban-chan..."

"What?"

"When you came to Mugenjou... you weren't just looking for a good fight-"

"Of course I was, stupid. Why else would I, the invincible Midou Ban-sama, ever visit such a dingy, grubby, dirty place?"

"-you were looking for a way to die weren't you?"

Rubbing his eyes, Ban turned away from the road for a moment, and stared at Ginji, blue eyes icy. Ginji, however, recognised the ice in those eyes. It was the fragile ice that formed on top of puddles, a thin layer that begged to be broken open to let out what was beneath.

Gathering his resolve, Ginji stared right back.

"You were searching all that time, but you don't need to die anymore. Everything's better now because Himiko-chan forgave you."

Then Ginji smiled, letting sun shine through his serious pose.

"And you're a GetBacker now. I can't just let you leave. The 'S' in GetBackers means that we'll never be alone, and now that you have a chance to really live, I won't let you miss it."

Ban nodded absently, concentrating on the road, then asked suspiciously, "What do you mean by 'really live' Ginji?"

"Himiko-chan forgave you, and you like her and she likes you back, and you're the only one that doesn't notice!" Said Ginji, with innocent certainty.

As Ban sputtered, and turned bright red, Ginji babbled on happily.

"And one day, you'll both realise it, and you'll get married and live together, and have lots of ki-"

Whatever else Ginji was going to say was lost forever to the world, as Ban, blushing furiously, stopped the car, opened the door, and kicked Ginji out.

"Shut up baka. You can walk. You'll make it there eventually."

Piteously, Ginji cried "BAN-CHAN!", as he sprinted after the car.

* * *

"You know I love you, right onii-chan?" 

"You do?"

"Stupid onii-chan! Of course I do!"

"If you say so..."

"You're very stubborn you know, onii-chan."

"Some say that it's one of my best qualities."

"But other times it's very annoying."

"I see..."

"You could at least say that you love me back, onii-chan."

"I thought you already knew that."

"Girls like to hear it out loud sometimes."

"Really? I never knew that."

"Onii-chan."

"You know that I love you Amayako(1)."

"I love you too Kuro-ni."

"The mush is starting to make me nauseous."

"Mr. No-Brake, you of all people should not be getting car sick."

"And Jackal, you of all people should not be bringing such a liability into a job just because she is dear to you."

They stared at each other for a while, then chuckling, Akabane Kuroudo tipped his hat over his eyes.

"You will see how much of a liability she is when the retrievers attack, as we know they will."

"If you say so, Jackal.", their driver replied.

_And if you'd stop sending reports of our movements to the mediators, we wouldn't have to deal with retrievers in the first place..._

Sighing, Mr. No-Brake turned his eyes back to the road. This was going to be a very long night.

* * *

(1) Amayako- Amaya means "night rain", ko meas "child of". Thus, child of the night rain. I'll get to that later. 

AN: Alright, enter the Mary Sue. X3 That wasn't so bad, was it? I'll probably face a lot of criticism, but I really don't think that she's so bad. Or at least, she could be a lot worse. I was sort of inspired to write her up from a fan-fic that I read while perusing I'll get you the title if you want it, although it's a bit psychotic, even though it's only a one-shot XP

And I mean psychotic as in horror-slasher fic

Whew! That's done! I love Ginji, he's so cute when he babbles.

I'm so glad that this thing is flowing... although I'm apprehensive as to how I'm going to write the fight scene that's coming up

It'll be the first time that I've ever done something like this... so bear with me if it's horrible, and correct me when I'm wrong.

Thanks to all!

And now, here's some of Natsumi's choco-chip cookies for my wonderful reviewers X3.

Rabid Lola: g I changed the chapter, so the nose bleeding's gone, but Hevn's boobs are so fun to write… it's almost as if they have minds of their own…. plot bunnies start attacking oh my, I'm not sure that I should have gone that way... And yes, the ducks will be explained soon

Riyuji.Raicho: I'll definitely make those edits when I get them (There will probably be many edits of these chapters) and whatever a subuke is... I'm not sure I want to know… 0.o

EEJBan: Well, I've already seen the whole of the GetBackers season, as my best friend bought all the DVDs in Hong Kong, then dragged me over for a sleep over to watch it XD My original passion for GetBackers, though, came from reading the first and second volume of the manga. Read them, they're just as good, if not better, than the anime. BTW, in the anime, Hevn is a prude in comparison to her manga counterpart, the reason why Hevn jiggles her cleavage around so much in the fic. I don't agree with the whole Ban/Hevn thing, as stated in y authors notes. so don't expect to see it in my fics (The fic "My Boyfriend" got me hooked on Akabane/Hevn, but that won't be shown here either).

Please review, it makes me happy, feeds my muse and helps me write new chapters


	3. 3: The Interception

Retrievers, Transporters and Ducks! Oh My! (Edit #1)

By: Alicorn

Chapter Rating: **PG** (swearing and discussion of certain natural functions)

Betas: Riyuji and Rabid Lola

Note: Since they have the same given name, Dr. Jackal shall be referred to as Akabane, while Amayako shall be Amayako when I write,and when other people talk to her, she'll be Akabane-chan, while Jackal with be Akabane-san. Hope that clears up any future confusion X3

* * *

Akabane Kuroudo pondered. 

This was a rather often occurrence lately, what with the fact that he had just discovered that a) his little sister was not dead, b) she actually stillcared forhim, didn't blame him for anything and wanted to live with him, and c) she had become very pretty.

This last fact disturbed him more than the others in that, he didn't love Amayako in any way other than a platonic fashion, and really didn't want to. Not to mention that he felt uncomfortably like Midou Ban.

This was not to say that Akabane didn't like being around the girl he considered his sister, but he really didn't like the way his body reacted when she walked around their shared apartment in a towel after a shower.

_I suppose the biggest problem is, if I find her attractive, other people will as well... _

The prospect of other people ogling his sister was very disturbing, and out of habit, his scalpels jumped to his hands.

_I will definitely have to start cutting things off if I see anyone with lecherous intent._

His thoughts were interrupted when something tapped his cheek.

"Kuro-nii!" Amayako, who had been sitting in the 'back seat' part of the truck had leaned forward, and her head stuck out between the headrests of the two chairs. Her necklace, a thin gold chain that held a little charm shaped like a flying bird, swayed from side to side, then hit his cheek a second time. "There's headlights in the side view mirror, and there's shouting going on from that direction too."

Dr. Jackal chuckled, and resheathed his scalpels. "Ah, so the GetBackers have arrived."

Amayako grabbed the road map from the dashboard, and stared at it for a minute, then crowed triumphantly, brandishing the bit of paper as if it were a trophy.

"Mya! Mr. No-Brake! We're almost at the trade-off point! You can do it!"

In response, the man at the wheel of the Transporter truck grunted, and then, if possible, pushed the acceleration pedal harder, and the truck moved even faster than before.

* * *

"Ban-chan, they've noticed us!" cried Ginji, apprehensively. 

"Yeah, ok. Why don't you get ready to jump, and I'll focus on driving."

After letting Ginji run behind the car, screaming desperately, for fifteen minutes, Ban had let up and let the exhausted blonde back into the car on the condition that he was not to mention Himiko in relation with Ban in any way, shape, or form. The much subdued Ginji had slumped down in his seat and agreed exhaustedly.

After much debate, the duo had decided that Ginji would try jumping onto the back of the truck, and into the back to get the box of disks without being hit by Himiko's perfumes. At the very least, Ginji boarding the truck would cause Akabane to come out, and hopefully would cause the truck to stop so the transporters could fight without being left behind.

The 360 caught up to the truck, inch by inch, until finally they were close enough. With a leap, Ginji jumped out of the sun-roof, and grabbed onto the back of the truck, shimmying over until he could grab the handles to open the door.

Ban barely kept up with the speeding truck, as he cooed softly to his car.

"C'mon baby, I know that you can do better than this. Come on, only a few more minutes, then Ginji will be back, and we can slow down."

Meanwhile, Ginji fumbled with the catch to the truck's back doors. As he finally hit the catch properly, he grinned, but his cry of triumph was cut off as the truck swerved.

* * *

"Shit! Why the fuck grab me like that Amayako?" 

"You were going to HIT them! ... and you call onii-chan 'Jackal', so at least give me the respect of calling me by codename as well, Brakee-tan(1)."

"What is it then?"

With a grin and a V-sign, she pronounced, "Shinigami!"(2)

* * *

Midou Ban was surprised to say the least. 

He would have never thought that all it took to stop Mr. No-Brake was a line of ducklings crossing the road(3).

* * *

When the truck swerved, Ginji thought that he was going to be sick. 

When it hit a tree, he thought he was going to die.

Then the door stopped abruptly, and his mind went blank with sheer terror. _Come on Ginji, you can do this. You're a Get Backer!_

Letting go of the door handle, and creeping underneath it, Ginji grabbed hold of the lip of the truck's back door, and pulled himself up, only to face a dark shadow.

"WAAH! A-A-Akabane-san..."

The cloth tied about his head fluttered in the wind as the figure standing in the truck's back cocked his head to the side, his face in shadow.

"Why did you call me by –san(4)?", the figure asked with a silky voice. Ginji's adrenaline rush slowed as he looked at the boy he faced.

Long black hair tied back with a red cloth like that Shaman King character(5), red turtleneck, black pants… definitely not Akabane-san. Actually, that cloth makes me think of Makubex more than anyone else. Wonder why he's here?

"Who are you?" asked Ginji curiously. "And why are you travelling with Akabane-san and Mr. No-Brake?"

"Who are you to ask, and why are you breaking into their truck?"

"I'm a dakkanya, retrieving something that was stolen."

"From this truck?"

"Yes ..."

Amayako studied the intruder intently.

Oversized green vest over an equally oversized white tee-shirt and green shorts, fingertip gloves with metal backings, spiky blonde hair, big brown eyes ... this would be Ginji-kun then. What did onii-chan say about him again? Oh yeah...

"Please don't."

The boy shifted so that the moonlight hit his face, and Ginji realised with a startthat "he" was a she ... and she had the biggest puppy-dog eyes known to man.(6)

"Ah- I sorta have to ... it's my job."

"Are you suuuure?Because ... I'm supposed to be guarding the truck while onii-chan is away."

The eyes grew bigger, and tears started to form at the corners.

_Onii-chan... Could she be Mr. No-Brake's little sister?_

Stuttering now, Ginji tried his own pleading.

"M-maybe **you** could back down?"

She simpered, and leaned a bit closer.

"But... you're the one stealing things from my onii-chan's truck."

Ginji now had himself on good moral ground.

"Not stealing, un-stealing. I'm retrieving it. And ... I'm sorry chibi(7), but I have to get it back."

"I'm sorry as well then."

The tears disappeared as big brown eyes flashed red in the moonlight, and pain blossomed in his ear.

As his world faded to darkness, Ginji heard the voice of Mr. No-Brake grumble, "Hmph, so you can use those after all."

* * *

When the shadow landed on his car, Ban immediately dropped, and dove out the door, tucking and rolling into a defensive position. 

Chuckling, Akabane advanced.

"Ah, Midou-kun, it's so nice to see you again."

Ban ran his fingers through his hair, and sighed, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it.

"I guess we'll have to fight, huh Jackal?"

"Unless the famed Midou Ban is going to back down... and that _would_ be disappointing."

"Hmph."

Ban took a deep breath from his cigarette, then blew a cloud of blue smoke into the air.

"I beat you in Infinite Castle, and I can beat you again."

"Ah,let's see if you can."

Then, laughing his mocking laugh, Akabane unleashed a rain of scalpels from his hands.

"Damnit!"

Ban shouted, and jumped, screaming, "I'll fight you, but just get away from the car, okay? I don't wanna have to repair her again so soon!"

"Whatever you say Midou-kun, as long as we can have some fun."

Akabane leaped off the hood of the 360 and hurled himself at Ban with scalpels in hand. Dodging under the stabbing knives, Ban punched upwards.

"SNAKE-BITE!"

He tore off a piece of Dr. Jackal's coat, but the man had twisted in mid-flight, hit a nearby tree feet-first, then catapulted himself back.

Ban whirled around to face the oncoming Jackal, but flinched to the side as a rain of glowing scalpels flew at him.

"Shit."As he stumbled backwards, Ban was unaware of the mob of cars that drove up the road behind him until he was hit by multiple stabbing pains in his back, and his world went black.

Pausing, Akabane brushed himself off, then looked through the slit in his hat brim, at the man who climbed out of the leading car. "What made you come out here Watanbe-san(8)?"

"Your tardiness made us wonder if ... negative ... events had happened."

Walking up to the unconsciousbody of Ban, and nudging it with his boot, he continued, "It appears that our suspicions were correct Akabane-san."

"Hmm, so it seems. Still, we transporters could have handled this problem by ourselves."

There was a shout from the trees. "Hey boss!" A man in a suit with sunglasses, traditional yakuza attire, ran towards Dr. Jackal and Watanbe, tie flapping in the wind. "We've secured the perimeter."

"Hmm." Watanbe nodded, smiling slightly as a pair of men picked up Ban's body, and started dragging it with them to a black car.

"You messed up and didn't get the delivery to us Akabane-san. We are disappointed that you didn't live up to your reputation."

"Ah, but that was because of YOUR interference. I would suggest that you not do that if you call for our services again... I hate having my fun spoiled..." Scalpels sprung to his fists, as Akabane's eyes closed to slits. "Do I make myself clear Watanbe-san?"

"Dr. Jackal, I think that YOU should be the one backing down."

Pulling out a black box with an ominous white button, he gestured. "My men have secured the perimeter, as well as the middle-aged man, blonde youth, and young girl that were in the back of your truck, your partners I presume? If you let us shackle you and you behave, we might not line them up and kill them executioner style. And don't try to kill me. If I press this button, or if I die, an alarm will go off and they'll be killed immediately."

Watanbe pulled out a cigar, cut, and lit it all the while playing with that sleek black box, as Akabane glared from under his hat.

Then, suddenly, the scalpels re-sheathed themselves, and Akabane stalked closer.

"I will comply with your demands as long as you treat my partners properly... and please keep the blonde and the girl apart, he's not one of my partners, and I don't want him around my lady partner."

Watanbe smiled around his cigar.

"I'm glad we agree with each other."

He called, and a young man in yakuza attire ran up with handcuffs, and gestured for Akabane to cuff his hands behind his back. The steel rings closed with a definite click, and Akabane was escorted into one of the black cars.

Watanbe watched for a while as the car drove off, then dropped his cigar into the dirt, and pulled out his cellphone.

"Hello. The cargo is on its way. Make sure that they're ... comfortable."

* * *

(1) School girls tend to add on nonsense endings, like –tan, or –pi, because they're cute. Amayako tends to make up cutesey names for people, because she tends to be immature when things aren't serious. 

(2) "Shinigami"- the Japanese god of death. A bit over-used in some parts, but it fits. meh.

(3) And the duckies appear again X3... and they WILL be a theme ... thus the name, right? _hee_

(4) –san is usually added for those considered equals, sort of a respect term. As Amayako is noticeably younger, and female, she would be called 'Akabane-chan' if anything.

(5) Yes, that Shaman King character is Anna

(6) As you know, Ginji has a weakness for cute women X3 (more obvious in the manga) And yes, my sister can make those eyes… and cry at will to boot shudders Her husband will be SO whipped X3

(7) "Chibi"- kid. Dunno, it seemed like something Ginji would say to a younger girl to calm her down?

(8) I always have reasons when picking my names. Watanbe is one of the most common ones in Japan... so it's sorta like being "Mr. Smith", and it's not necessarily his real name.

AN: My first cliffie ... I'm so proud T-T

And the (non-existant) fans scream in agony.

Akabane is a bit perverted... but honestly, I think it's a natural reaction for a boy if he sees a pretty body, whether or not they're related… /_swt_/

And yes, I know that both the GetBackers are out, and very clichédly too, but what can I say? They ALWAYS get into a fix before they're pulled out of it... and you can figure out what the stabbing pains were.

First reviewer who gets it right gets a prize X3

* * *

Whee! There are reviews! pokes at the SHINEE-ness of them 

So, without further ado, let's give out some of the carrot-cakeI made this weekend (with cream cheese icing!)

Sister Reiana - I don't know..Akabane-san just might ENJOY a plate of cookies with some warm milk... I presonally think that he's the type to have a sweet tooth X3

Rabid Lola - Paul/HEVN's nice, but Invader really had me goin' ... I may even try it (although I'm probably not going to... Akabane ships are hard to write properly). Thanks for getting the chappie done! I'l try to write up GB, although I seriously doubt that it'll be done before March Break starts ; dies

* * *

And so, Chapter 3 is done. 

bleh.

Alicorn


	4. 4: The Capture

Retrievers, Transporters and Ducks! Oh My!

By: Alicorn

Rating: **G**

Betas: Riyuji and Rabid Lola

* * *

Ginji woke up to a sharp pain in his ear. Now, most people would be upset by this, but our Thunder Emperor was not most people. He tended to sleep in on normal days, and it was a regular occurrence for Ban to tug him out of the car by his ear and send him flying. So a twinge in his ear was no problem. 

The strange thing was the fact that, when he tried to get into a sitting position, he couldn't move his hands, and there was a ... clinking sound?

"Waah! What happened! Why am I chained to a wall!"

There was a snort from beside him.

"I dunno, maybe because we were captured by the yakuza?"

"Oh. How did that happen?" Ginji struggled, finally managing to sit up so that he could see the person he was talking to.

"Ah! It's you!"

The girl from the truck glared at him.

"Yes. What about it?"

"You're the girl from the truck! I thought you were a boy, but then you turned and had the biggest, hugest eyes, and then you got mad and stuck something in my ear!"

The girl quirked an eyebrow, then pouted sulkily

"And if the needle had stayed, I wouldn't have to put up with you. You'd be nicely unconscious, and I could nurse my bruises in silence."

"Needle?"

Ginji looked over, and indeed, there was a sliver of something bright and pointy and shiny.

"Cool! You're like Juubei then!"

The girl blinked, and cocked her head to the side.

"Juu-jube? What?"

Ginji laughed then, and shock he head.

"Not Juu-jube, Juu-BEI! Kakei Juubei! He uses needles as well, although his are a lot thicker than yours..."

The girl looked interested now, and leaned forward.

"There's another person who uses needles to fight? That's cool, I thought that I was the only one!" She grinned. "Maybe you're more interesting than I thought! Tell me more!

"By the way, you can call me Shinigami. My onii-san doesn't want people knowing my real name," she finished apologetically, "Sorry."

"It's no problem! You can call me Ginji."

"Alright Ginji-tan! ... Now tell me a story? Pweeeeease?"

* * *

Mr. No-Brake was bored. 

No, make that, _extremely_ bored.

He had been bored when hewatched the sleeping body of Midou Ban lying on the floor if the cell, but now that the jyagan-master had awoken, the constant barrage of insults was even less intellectually stimulating.

"Well, I guess you transporters failed this time... oh well, it's not like I ever really trusted that _Dr. Jackal_ of all people would be able to choose sane clients. The man's practically half insane to begin with."

The running commentary was really quite annoying.

"He should be put in a loony bin."

_Maybe talking would make him shut up for a few minutes?_

"With nice white padded walls, and a straight jacket-"

"You know Midou-san, it was Lady Poison who told us about this employer in the first place."

"... oh."

* * *

"And that's basically it... it's sorta embarrassing now that I think about it." 

The girl was laughing hysterically, and Ginji mentally patted himself on the back.

_Laughter must be the prettiest sound in the world._

"You actually mistook that string-guy for a girl? That's just hilarious. Not that that hasn't happened to me before. People keep mistaking me for a boy when I first meet them."

"Hmm... well, I don't know about other people, but I made that mistake too..."

Realising he had made a mistake when she levelled a Look-of-Doom on him, Ginji back-pedalled swiftly.

"It's not that you look like a boy now, I mean, it's very easy to tell you're a girl from here, it's just that in the dark, it's hard to see your boobs, not that I only look at that to tell that they're girls, but you have a fighter's stance, so I assumed you were a boy, not that only boys can fight or anything-"

He stopped when he realised that she was laughing again.

"Wah-haha-you're the-haha-cutest thing that-heh- I've ever seen-haha" She was panting and clutching at her sides, her giggling accompanied by the soft clinking of her manacle chains. With a wry smile, she added, "You know, if I had met you under other circumstances- ONII-CHAN!"

Ginji's head snapped towards the door, where a bedraggled lump of black cloth had just been thrown. Shinigami dashed as far as her chains would allow, then cradled it, revealing the human form hidden within.

"Onii-chan! Onii-chan, what did they do to you? ONII-CHAN!"

Meanwhile, having recognised the hat on top of the cloth, Ginji started stuttering, and popped into tare-form.

"A-Akabane-san!"

_Who's so powerful that they could beat you up to that extent? You weren't in that condition even after Ban-chan fought you at Mugenjyou that time...!_

* * *

Midou Ban pondered, seeming to struggle over the fact that Himiko may have done something stupid, then his eyes widened.. 

"Where's Himiko? Was she with you?"

Mr. No-Brake grunted, then mumbled, "No, Lady Poison decided to skip today's job because of previous engagements."

"Good. I wouldn't want-" Ban coughed. "I mean, it wouldn't be good for her to be cought up in something so unprofessional."

"Hn."

_He's got it bad... Better pretend to go to sleep before he starts going on about Lady Poison like she does about him._

Mentally rolling his eyes, Mr. No-Brake Nodded his head onto his chest, in prepareation for a nap.

* * *

Akabane coughed, spraying blood onto the floor, and tried to sit up.

"It's nothing Ama-Shinigami. I've been through worse, you know that."

"I know- But... how did this happen to you?"

"Quite simply, our employer. His name's not Watanbe, he's not even Japanese. He's a half-breed Japanese-Vietnamese-American bastard who had a grudge against me from a long time ago."

"H-he must be a very good fighter to be able to p-put you in this condition A-Akabane-san."

"Well he was holding Shinigami-chan hostage, so I couldn't-"

Akabane's head turned, and Ginji saw that the face underneath the hat had a split lip and a shiner that was rapidly turning purple before his eyes.

"Ah, Ginji-kun! So they did follow my directions not to put you with Shinigami-chan."

"Ah?"

Akabane chuckled, then rasped, "I had deduced that I would probably be put with a member of my team if anything happened to me as bullies always want to 'rub it in' , and that member would be Shinigami-chan, since she's assumed to be the weaker member. In case both of us were incapacitated, I figured there would be higher chances of escape if one of you GetBackers were in the cell with us so, I asked for you to be kept away from Shinigami-chan, as our captors would go against my wishes. I chose you over Midou-kun, because you're easier to work." He gasped then, and started coughing hard.

Throughout the speech, Ginji was confused, and not the least bit scared about how Akabane's mumbo-jumbo seemed to sound like one of Ban's plans.

_Does this mean that Ban-chan is like Akabane-san? EEP!_

"Alright onii-chan, you're very smart," said Shinigami, patting his head, "Now stay still, shut up, and let me fix you."

Fidgeting a little, she moved Akabane's head into her lap, and closed her eyes. There was a heart beat, and then Ginji felt a flow of something-that-was-like-electricity-but-was-not flow between the two transporters. Ginji saw Akabane's face and gasped.

The cuts vanished, the split lip shrunk and sealed before his eyes, and the sunrise around Akabane's eye had faded until it was almost unnoticeable.

_I've never seen that sort of thing happen outside of Mugenjyou!_

"Geez onii-chan, they really busted you up." Shinigami groaned, and stretched her arms, cracking joints. "Learn how to fall better." She giggled softly, and then ruffled Akabane's hair playfully.

Akabane smiled comfortingly (aka: he smiled in a way that was creepily like the way he smiled during a good fight) and sat up.

"In the future, I will do my best to comply imouto-chan (1)."

Ginji gasped as a revelation hit him.

_This girl is AKABANE KUROUDO'S little sister! DR. JACKAL has a little sister! WAAAH!"_

Tare-Ginji had never wibbbled(2) so hard in his life.

* * *

"Oy." 

"What, Midou-san?"

"Every time Ginji and I try to stop you from driving, you always go right through our road blocks."

"I'm Mr. No-Brake, what do you expect?"

"Why'd ya stop for the ducklings?"

If sweat-drops were real, Mr. No-Brake's would have drowned the population of Tokyo.

* * *

(1) imouto-chan: little sister 

(2) wibble- a word I use to describe that pitiful shaking that people do when they're either really sorry, or really scared... I suppose it is most accurately described as the motion people make when they're imitating a bowl of Jello that Ginji's having fun with XD

AN: Originally, I had planned a lot more content in this chapter, but then I decided that it got to a nice ending point, so I would end it there and split the content up, otherwise, the chapter was gonna take way too long to write Don't worry though, there's really only a little content that I chopped off, and you'll see it in two weeks )

And yes, Akabane uses exclamation points when Ginji is concerned X3 … he gets very enthusiastic XD

Reviewer responses! We shall give out ice cream! XD

Rabid Lola : Evil Phillipino people mocking me with their school system. And you've got your answer about Ban and Ginji (Did you know that my sister thought it was pronounced Jinji for the longest time?)

* * *

_sighs dramatically_

See that little button down there on the left? Please press it...

Regular feeding helps me write X3


	5. 4 and a Half: The First Interlude

Retrievers, Transporters and Ducks! Oh My!

By: Alicorna

Rating:**T / PG**(Some mild swearing and the like ... I can't really understand the new rating system, but I'll try my best ;)

Betas: Riyuji and Rabid Lola

* * *

Himiko was having a pretty good day. 

Although her ankle was sprained, the cream the doctor had given her was working, and the painkillers were dulling the pain to almost unnoticeability. She had also been fed by Natsumi, a definite plus, and, best of all, she hadn't seen Midou Ban anywhere.

_The definite highlight of my day ... although it's rather strange that they aren't around. I've been chatting at the Honky Tonk for ages now, and they still haven't shown up yet... it's giving me a bad feeling._

"Say, Master, did the GetBackers get a job today?"

Paul looked up from cleaning the counters.

"Erm- I think that they met Hevn about something this morning, but I'll be damned if I can remember what it was about... much too early in the morning for me."

"Oh."

"Mmm... although, I think there was something about the yakuza in there? And experiment things?"

_Yakuza ... experiment! Ah, sh-_

Sighing, Himiko opened up her purse and palmed a pair of rather large-looking orange pills.

"Guess I'm gonna have to pull those two out of this mess."

She downed the lumps with the last of her milk, and waved to Natsumi. "I guess I'll be going now. I'll be back around closing time probably, maybe sooner if those idiots didn't screw up too badly..."

With a wave and a tinkle of the door, Lady Poison hobbled out of the building.

_I hope that these painkillers work. If they don't god forbid I have to try magic... And I am so gonna slaughter those two when I get them._

Re-thinking her statement, she amended it.

_At least, I'll slaughter Ban. He should have known better_.

* * *

AN: And there you have chapter 4 and a half 

It's not long, I know, but since a) I went on a writing binge lately after having block for so long so... yeah, 5 and 6 are with my betas Riyuji and Rabid Lola, and 7 is in the works... but since b) no one's reading this anyway, I don't feel too bad ;

... Bet you were looking long and hard for the duckies, hm?

_hehehe_

Couldn't find them?

That's because they aren't there. It's only a half chapter after all. Don't worry, the ducks will return... in the strangest ways possible (You're going to kill me for later uses, I'm sure)

And now to respond to the reviewers (The high point of my life XD)

Atropos' Knife: Oh. My. God. This is so exciting! dances about To have one of the writers I respect so much review really made my day ... and the fact that you enjoy my humour makes me happy My sister just thinks I'm weird >>; I hope that you enjoy this chapter too (If you're stil reading after the scarily long pause Oo)

Rabid Lola: Oh my wonderful beta, I worship the ground you walk on 3 I hope that this one lives up to expectations... It's not really changed from when you two read it but, hey! It's been so long that you might enjoy seeing it again XD

* * *

There you have it 

Alicorn(a)


	6. 5: The Rescuers

Retrievers, Transporters, and Ducks! Oh My!

By: Alicorn(a)

Rating: **T **(PG) for some harsh language

Betas: Riyuji and Rabid Lola

* * *

Mr. No-Brake was a pretty easygoing guy. He liked his food hot and his beer cold, and he appreciated the quiet of a nice drive at night on a highway. When he was home, he'd sit with his dog at his feet in front of the television, watching sports while his wife put the children to bed. He was hard to annoy and it was almost impossible to make him angry. 

But Ban was starting to creep him out.

It wasn't the man's incessant babbling; it was the fact that he had stopped. If he was with other people, Mr. No-Brake expected some sort of noise to occur in the background. He had a toddler and a pre-schooler at home, he was used to it. He didn't mind the bantering because it kept him interested, awake and relatively amused.

But now the man had dropped off into sleep, and he was just SITTING there. It gave him shivers.

Mr. No-Brake sighed, and shifted himself. Jackal better not take too long, otherwise his rear was gonna go numb for good.

* * *

Shinigami stood up, arching her back and stretching, her spine cracking audibly. "Damn, I hate picking locks like that... they're always much too near to the ground." 

Sticking her tongue out at said lock, she turned to the men standing behind her. "Alright, so all I have to do is push, and we're out ... what do we do first?"

Immediately, Ginji blurted, "We have to find Ban-chan!"

Akabane nodded thoughtfully. "Indeed, that would be a wise idea. Mr. No-Brake should be with him,  
or nearby, and we need all the people we can get to break out of here."

"Onii-san, we might have a bit of a problem..." Shinigami tentatively shifted from one leg to another. "Well... we don't know where the hell Mr. No-Brake, and Ginji-kun's 'Ban-chan' are. Which way do we go?"

Ginji chirped, "I could find Ban-chan easily in this place! His tingles are very distinct!"

Grinning as if talking about "tingles" was perfectly natural, Akabane smoothly glided up to the door, and pushed it open.

"Off we go then."

* * *

Moaning woke Mr. No-Brake from his nap, and growling, he was about to hit his dog when he realized that it was that annoying GetBacker making the noise. 

_Argh. Stupid man. Stupid chains stopping me from hitting the stupid man. Stupid ducks for getting me into a situation where I was put in the stupid chains that stop me from hitting the stupid man... _

Growling, he turned, and tried his best to ignore the softening noises from the other side of the room.

* * *

Swirling colours surrounded him as he stood on in the middle of a seemingly endless sea of mist. 

_What the hell's happening here?_

The clouds cleared, and all of a sudden, he realised that he was on a high platform, overlooking a post-apocalyptic world. Broken buildings surrounded him, and chunks of concrete littered the ground with dead tree branches and telephone wire adding variety.

He saw two dots in the sky, coming closer, closer, closer, growing into two vague figures, one light, and one dark.

_I see wings?_

They settled on two pieces of a broken sky scraper, focusing their attention on him.

_**Choose.**_

The mist rose, and the two figures came into sharp detail. One was bright with angelic feathers and floating crystalline hair. Green eyes sparked, and a smile beckoned. The other was dark, with a dragon's leathery sails. Red eyes glowed from behind strands of liquid night.

_An angel and a demon? _

_**CHOOSE.**_

All of a sudden, his voice unfroze, and Ban said,

_Well, obviously I'd pick the light one. Why the hell would I choose a demon? I've already got one in my arm._

The angel's limpid green eyes shone as it floated down and pulled him into its embrace, and then its smile widened, baring pointed fangs.

**"You chose death, child of the cursed eyes. Never trust outer appearances."**

The angel flashed its fangs, opening a gash down his cheek, and blood stained its white wings crimson.

Ban let out a strangled squawk.

_Shit, that hurt!_

As Ban twisted and squirmed, trying to get out of the angel's iron grip, the dark one cocked her head to the side, and looked on sadly.

**"Know that you should not always fear darkness, for things are always worse before they are mended, as you should know well, wielder of Aesclepius. Remember what you have learned. It will be important." **

_Damn it! Of all the people in the world, it would have to be me that gets stuck with the freaky eyes, the bitchy snake spirit and the weird visions. Well FUCK THAT! I'm waking up now!_

And then he did, gasping and sweaty, and the angel's hands about his neck became warmed links of steel.

"'Bout time you woke up, stupid. You've been writhing on the floor grunting for the last half hour, and it's been bothersome."

Pulling himself into a sitting position, Ban blew a strand of hair out of his face. "Well, if you don't like it, then get us out of here!" Sighing, he sat back, and grumbled, "I need a smoke."

* * *

"Onii-san!" 

"What, Shinigami?"

"Don't you think it's boring just to kill things?"

"Not really, why?"

"Because it's a lot harder to put someone out of service without killing them. After all that takes skill."

"All right... Your point is?"

"5 points for unconsciousness, 1 point for wounding into submission, and negative 5 for killing."

"... That sounds reasonable."

"Yosh!"

* * *

AN: That's the end of Chapter 5. 

Sorry all, I saw a Ban icon with "Pocky Pimp!" emblazoned on it and wrote in a second dream ;

But you're not seeing it 'til next week X3 ((Because I didn't have enough humour -.-;))

To my betas: Hehe, I just added the point system in for the sheer amusement of thinking "5 points! 10 points! I'm beating you!" and comparing them to Lord of the Rings

Oh no, the cousins will come haunt me too /swt/ Will I survive? XD


	7. 6: The Escape I

Retrievers, Transporters and Ducks! Oh My!

By: Alicorn

Rating: **T** For... well... blatant innuendo /_dies_/

Betas: Riyuji and Rabid Lola

Note: Ionly skimmedthis over for any omissions that FFNet may have created, eg: loss of symbols and formatting, so if you notice something, I'd really appreciate it if you told me. THANKS!

* * *

Ban had nodded off to sleep again, although this time his dreams were a lot different. 

They involved beautiful women, bubble baths, and a helluva lot of Pocky.

Hey, don't EVER say that the man doesn't have any imagination ... he just chooses not to use it.

He could be heard muttering under his breath, "Ayumi-chan! You naughty girl! Rubber ducks don't go THERE..."

Mr. No-Brake grunted, and stuck his hands over his ears. "I think I preferred it when he was just spazzing in a corner."

* * *

The problem with fighting in closed hallways was the fact that your senbon (1) just keep getting stuck in the damn walls, Amayako thought to herself. Pulling a senbon out of the overhanging lights with an annoyed twitch of her hand, she amended that thought. The low ceilings were a bitch too. 

Ginji was also having his own problems. It was all well and good to shock lightning all over the place, but when one of your companions is hitting the metal walls all the time with metal weapons, it's difficult to keep them from being electrocuted.

"Screw it." Shinigami finished off the last in the wave of guards. "This isn't working. I keep getting my senbon stuck in the walls trying to avoid you two, and Ginji-kun keeps missing and giving me hair messier than yours, onii-san."

Indeed, if you looked at the girl, her hair was rather frizzy, even though the headscarf kept most of it back.

"What should we do then, Shinigami-chan?" Ginji turned to her, and both he and Akabane looked on expectantly.

Amayako thought for a minute, tapping her finger on her chin, then she grinned, "Got it! I'll throw, and then he can use my senbon as markers to aim! Onii-san can avoid my senbon, and if Ginji-kun stays right behind me, I don't need to worry about hitting him." Smugly proud of herself, she cocked her head to the side, and asked, "Is that ok?"

Ginji frowned, thinking to himself. "Can I see one of your needle-things, Shinigami-chan?" Taking one from her, he flipped it around in his hands. "I think I can hit these. They're different from the metal on the walls."

"I'd hope so. I purchased them for her, after all. The dealer promised me that they were pure titanium." Akabane's scalpels flashed as he looked out from under his hat. "I'd hate to have them be less than satisfactory."

Ginji gulped, and JUST managed to keep from popping tare.It would be a Very Bad Thing to do that. He still had to find Ban-chan after all.

"Let's get going then!" Shinigami tapped her foot impatiently, gesturing with her arms. "We'll never get to Brakee-tan if we stand here!"

"Indeed. Ginji-kun, are we close to Midou-kun yet?"

"Un! Close!"

* * *

The sound of screaming was the only warning that Midou Ban got that his partner was coming to rescue him. 

"Secure the cells!"

"Shit!"

"He's got a taser!"

"My legs! I can't mo-"

"What the hell do you think's going on?", asked Ban, turning to Mr. No-Brake after failing to see what was happening outside.

Mr. No-Brake yawned and stretched. "That sounds like Jackal. He must be having some fun." Rubbing his shackled wrists, the big man stood up. "Looks like your partner and Jackal's little sister are with him too, judging by the shouts."

Screams of "My eyes!" and "Not the face!" made their way through the uncomfortable silence as Ban rolled over this incomprehensible idea in his mind. "Little sister?"

"Yeah, surprised me too, but, whatever. His parents must have been pleased that at least their second child turned out a little better. (2)Shinigami-chan's not nearly as ... homicidal, shall we say?"

Ban's response was cut off as something thudded against the door to the cell. He saw a guard's head hit the small barred window, then sink down, and then Ginji's smiling face peered through.

"Ban-chan! We'll get you out of here in no time! Shinigami-chan's good with locks!" Ban was about to ask, "Who the heck is Shinigami-chan?" when the door swung open, the click of the lock muffled by the screams that were still echoing down – Jackal was obviously bringing up the rear.

A smiling girl bounced into the room eagerly, shouting, "Brakee-tan!" and hitting the man with a flying tackle-hug, red headscarf flaring behind her like some sort of abnormal tail.

No-Brake took the glomp with an "Oof!" and hugged her back tentatively. She reminded him of his daughter, strangely enough... except for the weird nicknames. If only he could stop her from using the weird nicknames.

Meanwhile, Ginji was mirroring Amayako, popping into tare form and glomping the heck out of Ban, all the while crying, "Ban-chan!".

Ban responded in his usual way, shouting, "ARGH! Get OFF Ginji!", swinging the poor tare into a wall.

At this, Shinigami and Mr. No-Brake gave the pair a _Look of WTF-ness_, and Ban sweatdropped, tugging at the tearing tare on his shirt.

"He's not usually like this..."

Akabane decided to poke his head in at that moment. "Much as reunions warm my heart, we really must get going now."

Shinigami poinked over to Ban, and grabbed his wrists before he even realised what she was doing. Pulling out a pair of senbon, she chirped, "Just stay still mister man! I'll have these off in no time!" With some careful fiddling, Ban's shackles opened, and he rubbed his wrists thoughtfully.

"So you're Jackal's little sister, are you?"

"Yup! But we'd better get going now!"

Shinigami tugged Ban out into the hallway, where Akabane waited, while Ginji and Mr. No-Brake followed.

"Which way, onii-san?"

"Hn. I suppose we'll go back the way we came. I believe that I saw a set of stairs. Perhaps those will lead us somewhere to get our bearings. Follow me."

With that, Dr. Jackal turned on his heel, and ran smoothly down the hall. The rest of the little party followed, while Ginji filled Ban in on the predicament.

The group actually made it up the stairs and into a large main hallway without anything more than a few mishaps. Most probably they had wiped out the guards on the lower floor as they went to get Ban and Mr. No-Brake. However, as in all anime, their luck was about to change.

"Prisoners! Halt!"

A row of guards ran out from the three doorways leading into the large room, and circled the group.

Ban cracked his knuckles.

"I've been meaning to beat the shit out of something for a while now. It might as well be you. SNAKE BITE!"

Following Ban's lead, Ginji shouted and started hitting guards with lightning-coated fists with abandon. After all,he had so much lovely space to run around in. Why not use it?

"Don't forget the game, onii-san! I'm only trailing by 3 points!"

Chuckling his scary _I'm-amused_ laugh(3), Akabane pulled out a new set of scalpels and started hacking at things as Shinigami threw her senbon into the air, creating a rain of metal shards. It was hard to tell which sibling was doing better, Dr. Jackal who was hamstringing people at a rather quick rate, or Shinigami, who was paralyzing soldiers with deadly accuracy.

Meanwhile, Mr. No-Brake sat back in a quiet corner and watched them go at it. He was just the driver after all. Shaking his head, he muttered, "They don't pay me enough to do this job."

* * *

(1) Senbon – metal needles used as weapons... basically I switched them with 'senbon', since they're a more technical term. Hope I don't confuse! 

(2) Yes, No-Brake only has limited knowledge about Amayako. After all, he's known her for less than a day. How's he supposed to know that she and Jackalaren't blood-related?

(3) Not to be confused with his "You-die-now" laugh, or his "Aren't-you-CUTE?" laugh... although the three are all scarily similar.

* * *

Thank you to: 

Atropos' Knife/swt/ Sorry if I scared you with my crazy fan-girlness. I'll tone it down X3 Thanks for the complimenting of Brakee-tan, BTW XD I love him to to bits... he's just so fun to write/_teehee_/

Sylerna: Thank you! It's a joy to know that Amayako's not too Mary-Sue-ish... She was actually created a while ago for an English writing project. I was re-reading my notes, for some reason, and found the story, and then she wouldn't stop haunting me /_hehehe_/ So that's how she came to be

Rabid Lola: Yes, Glomping is good /_purr_/

marbles: Yeah, I know how that is... I've done the "let's just ignore it for now" thinf before /_swt_/ And yes, the duckies should be returning in this chapter /_swt_/ Oh boy, do they ever

bLuELuNa: Yeah, Ginji's not that bad in the anime, but he can be a bit perverted in the manga... not to mention that Hevn's boobs are just hypnotic... it's hard NOT to look at them, especially when they move in such interesting patterns... but I digress XD BTW, the Ban/Himiko will be extremely sparse, but there will be a couple moments in the future...

To my betas: Akabane… as a horse? O.o. I didn't think of it that way ...

And yes, Mr. No-Brake is so unloved TT In my head, he's a pretty good guy ; The spiffy one-liners make me happy XD

* * *

AN: Alright, we shall call Amayako by her real name if the writing if from her point of view or Akabane's. In all other points of view, she'll be Shinigami . I guess it'll be confusing at first but that's how each person would think of her, right? It's like, you know when some one talks about Lady Poison, they mean Himiko, and vice versa? So yes… tell me if you think I could fix it better /_heh _/ 

I've got some fun things planned for the future, including aa rather large and convoluted fight scene... but seeing as how I've never actually written any fights other than that really short snippet in a previous chapter, please don't mind if I do a really bad job of it.

And there will be ducks.

Indeed, there will be ducks.

_Alicorn_


	8. 7: The Skirmish

Retrievers, Transporters, and Ducks! Oh My!

By: Alicorn(a)

Rating: **T **(PG) for violence

Betas: Riyuji and Rabid Lola

* * *

_It's so easy to lose yourself in battle. To melt in the rush, and focus your world onto the edge of your blade. The roaring, the screaming, the warm splattering of blood; they all blur and become a numbness. They bring peace. A strange sort of peace that very few others would understand._

Akabane slashed through a line of attackers, bestowing his bloody signature onto anyone who came at him, and on a few who didn't. His fight was like always: his movements were flowing in a graceful pattern, as he whirled in a strange dance, too fast for the eye to see, although the moans of his opponents as they died on his blades were his only accompaniment.

Except that, his opponents weren't dying anymore.

It seemed that death didn't have the same allure. He still loved the rush of fighting, but he just didn't feel like bestowing death upon others, nor did he feel the urge to court it himself.

A particularly vicious berserker attacked, and grazed Akabane's cheek. Said berserker had all the tendons in his major joints efficiently removed as Akabane flashed past him.

_I may not have a wife, but I do have a child who depends on me right now, so though it is cliche, I'm afraid that you can't kill me today. The only reason why I'm not killing you now, in fact, is that she might get ... upset. And I don't really want to cope with that at the presentt._

And that was Dr. Jackal's last coherent thought for a while. After all, his sister had just gotten to 52 points, and he couldn't let her BEAT him, now could he?

* * *

Whenever Ban, or anyone else, asked him how he made his electricity, Ginji answered that he didn't know how to describe it. Having that power flow through was like having molten heat run through your veins, and out of yourself, twining and burning like lava. But that description was too physical. It was harder than it looked really, because you had to grab at the electricity, and tame the wild beast until you could hold it in your hands.

Hitting people with electrically-enhanced punches was like hitting people while grasping angered cats that were hissing and spitting all the while. That's why Ginji wore his gloves after all. They were reinforced with insulators, and they naturally dampened his shocks. Why else do you think he always took them off when he needed to use his powers in earnest?

Sometimes though,when he was in a fight situation like this, there were too many people crowdingand pushing and jostling and trying to hit him. It was hard to focus, to keep his cool. And whenever Ginji wasn't in control, Raitei was waiting just under the surface, waiting for his chance to emerge, surging every time he shocked someone.

It was scary.

A break in the rhythm of the fighting occurred, a natural breather. Ginji glanced to where Ban-chan was. He kept Raitei away, after all.

Waitasec...

"BAN-CHAN! DUCK!"

* * *

Aesclepius hissed.

**Let me out, child. You know that you need my power**.

Ban snorted as he plowed his way through rows of men, crushing bone and cartilage as he went.

_Snake, I'm not gonna call you up. I'll get by on my own strength, and __my _ _own strength only._

Aesclepius chuckled darkly. **That's what you say now, but later...**

Ban heard a distant cry from Ginji, but was too busy with Aesclepius to notice.

_Bah. Later is later. Now let me focus you bas_--- GAH.

Some idiot had pulled a gun and fired a lucky shot. Icy flames shot down Ban's arm.

_Shit, that thing went deep..._

Covering his arm with his other hand, Ban shouted across the room, "Yo, Ginji! We gotta end this thing!"

* * *

The guards cleared away quickly. After all, there were 4 veteran fighters at work, and the gurads were no match, breaking like dry twigs in a hurricane.

"Ban-chan, are you ok?"

Leaping over the groaning bodies, Ginji rushed to his partner's side, to be greeted by a bop on the head.

"Stupid. If I was so weak that this hurt me, THEN you should be worried. It's just a scratch."

Shinigami ambled over, and took a look at Ban's bleeding arm.

"Geez. MEN. Always have to be so tough."

Shaking her head, she sighed, and said, "It may just be a scratch, but we're teammates for now, and since I can heal it up, I will."

Frowning a bit, she hovered her hands over the wound, and glared at it.

"Gah! That hurts!" Ban felt a strange pulling sensation. His wound burned, but as if he was stretching a joint too far, not as if it was being torn. When he looked down, he could see that the area glowed with a white light.

Finally, Shinigami stopped and looked up at Ban, panting.

"Sorry, but that's the best I can do with what I've got. I'm not at full health right now..."

Ban looked at the wound. The bullet had taken a chunk out of his arm, butthat gaping holehad now mostly filled in.All in all, itlooked more like a simple scrape, rather than a bullet wound.

"Hn. That's some skill you've got there."

Amayako didn't know how to react. This was only the second time she had used her skills on someone other than herself or her brother. The other time hadn't gotten such a good reaction.

"Um, thanks..."

Looking over to her brother, she turned back, and murmured, "We should be going, ne? Personally, I don't wanna know what happens when the next wave comes."

After a moments consideration, she added, "By the way, I got up to 70... you?"

Akabane responded with his patented "I-am-amused-but-must-not-show-it-because-of-my-image" grin, and replied, "71, sister dearest."

* * *

AN: Note the lack of footnotes... was the fic stillunderstandable? Please tell me.

Thanks to:

Kaeru Soyokaze - heh I'm glad you enjoyed my writing. I don't think Ginji gets a pairing yet... because frankly, I don't see anyone that I deem worthy of my favorite character /_swt_/

Rabid Lola - Thank you oh wonderful, marvolous, beta-who-I-love. I needed that X3.

marbles - Hee... sorry, that scene just HAD do be written ... and Ban being the pervert that he is... XD I'm sorry for leaving you in suspense! Hopefully this is better?

Atropos' Knife - Teehee! Maybe there's an allergy to hair conditioner that runs in the 'family' ... 'cuz Jackal certainly doesn't use any either... And I'll keep the titanium tips in mind, but I may warp reality just the TINIEST bit ... this is anime-verse after all /_fufufu_/

* * *

Yes, the ducks reference was extremely subtle here, because, quite frankly? Ducks are hard to find in a scene with this much fighting ... but they'll re-appear all over the place... you just have to find them 83 


End file.
